Lowering and handling apparatus for burial vaults



C. L. BERG Feb. 15, 1949. 2,461,675

LOWERING AND HANDLING APPARATUS FOR BURIAL VAULTS Filed May 2, 1945 3Sheets-Sheet l FIG. 2.

m T m V m CHRISTY L. BERG M ATTORNEY C. L- BERG 15, LOWERING ANDHANDLING APPARATUS FOR BURIAL VAULTS Filed May 2, 1945 3 Sheets-Sheet 2INVENTOR CHRISTY L.

' ATTORNEY Feb. 15, 1949.

Filed May 2, 1945 c. 1.. BERG AGLWS LOWERING AND HANDLING APPARATUS FORBURIAL VAUL'ITS 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR CHRISTY L. BERG ATTORNEYPatented Feb. 1949 LOWERING AND HANDLING APPARATUS FOR BURIAL'VAULTSChristy L. Berg, St. Louis, -Mo.

" Application May v2, 1945', Serial-No. 591,493

1 a 2 Claims.

" This-inve'ntion relates generally to a lowerin 'andhan'dling'apparatus for burial vaults, and

.a more particularly to an "apparatus for lowering such avault with-itsenclosed casket into a grave,

" in the process of making an interment. In this I irespect and for thispurpose the present inven- "tion embodies certain structuralimprovements lzupon applican'ts original United States patent,

"numbered 1,855,469.

'The main object of the present invention is" to provide an. improvedapparatus of the kind wr'eferred to and-as disclosed in said originalpat- -:ent-'and*wherein"the usual cofl'ln is enclosed withmina v'aultor' burialcase formed of concrete or n-otherisuitablematerial forprotecting the coflin. I

*In them'aking ofinterments by the use of the eapparatus-described inthe said original patent ..-and inthepresen't improved apparatus, thesep- --.arableabasez'slab of thevau'lt' is first positioned andproperlysupported overthe mouth of the i ..:grave.*by means of removablecross-strips extended :across the ends of the open grave, thennrsuspendin'ghthe dome of the vault vertically above ithe base; thenplacin the cofiin upon the vault base below the vault dome; thenlowering the vault domefover the coifin, and finally lowering l-t-hewhole':assembly to the bottom of the grave =-and-filling the latter in.

iThe' construction, operation and function of the' original patentedapparatus, in the process of making such interments, are fully set outin '1ztherxsaidwpatent, "and the primary object of this representinvention is 'to show and describe cerimprovements .in the :saidpatented appai: iratus,:ior? facilitating and rendering more efficient:'the'.use andoperation ofthe same.

I ADOthGI'Z'ObjGOt of the present invention is to 11providemeansincorporated upon the original -rinvention' for morex convenientlylocating and. 'placingthe lowering apparatus, and for regulatling-"andgoverning the speed of operation.

*With the'stated objects in view, together with such-Iotherandadditional objects and advan- -tages as may appear from the followingspecification; attention is now directed to the accom-' panying drawingas embodying and illustrat- Zing'thepreferred structural features of thepresenti invention as representing the said improve-- ..;.ments.overrthe original patent, and wherein:

. rratus assetrupreadyfor use over a grave,.showing the vault domesuspended above its base; and

supon-tlie base.

:eshowing in 'ibrokenu-lines thexcofiinas -,positioned Figure 2'isahorizontal section on'the line 2 2 ofFigure 1.

Figure 3 is an end elevation-of the assembly 1 as shown in Figure 1.

Figure 4 is an end view of the assembly-as shownin' Figure 1, showingthe vault dome however as lowered upon the vaultbase over'the 'cofiin,and ropes or cables passed underneath the ends of the vault base andreleasably connected at-their ends to the-ends of the lowering straps,

- preliminary to lowering the vault and enclosed c'oflin into the grave,thegear'head at one'end of the apparatusbeing broken away.

- Figure-Ms a side view on a reduced scale,'showingthe-vaultand enclosedcoffin'as lowered into the grave, the upper portions of the apparatusbeing broken away.

g Figure 6 isa sectional and fragmentarydetail on an enlarged scaleofthereleasable connections between the vault and the lowering strapsor'the apparatus.

Figure 7' is an enlarged detail of onerof'the gear heads and associatedelements; as employed at .each end of theapparatus for manipulating .andcontrolling. the lowering operations-of the apparatus.

Figure 8 is. a vertical section taken son .the planeindicated by theline 8-8 of Figure 7.

Figure '9. is a fragmentar detail showing a method of adapting theapparatus for one man" 1 operation.

' The original and. patented invention includes the four corner. postsl, jointing Ts"2 adjacent the upperends' of the posts,.and securedinplace by pins '3," relatively short sleeves or'tubes lbeing threadedinthelateral outlets of these'Ts, sills i being provided at the sides ofthegrave 'A,"and"th'ere ibeing socket members 8 seated atop the ends ofthe sills l for engaging "the lower en'dsof the posts I fonsupportingsame .in upright position." However in this'connection and in accordancewith the present invention "the posts 1 instead ofbeingflocatediendwiseof "thej'grave A,"are located laterally of the endsthereof, thus facilitating intermentsxin situations a where 'the endwisespace between adjacent graves and'tomb-stones is limited. "As a'matter lFigure lisa side .v1ew--ofthe complete appa- 1 of course. in lieu ofthesills 1, any other conven- "tional method of basal support for the"posts I "maybe provided. Alsoin the original and'patented construction,side bars "H3 connect at their "=-"ends"with the sleeves 4, thuscompletingfthe 'rectangularsupporting frame of the apparatus.

Also in *a'ccordance "with the original patented fifi 'inventiony- 'gearhousings of twmpartstructureare mounted atop two of the laterallyaligned corner posts I' at one side of the apparatus, but in accordancewith the revised and improved form of the invention the said housings Hare of three-part structure as clearly indicated in Figure 7 of thedrawing, the same including the pair of lower said castings l2a and thesuperposed top or cap castings l2b for covering both of the lowercastings l2a. This structure facilitates the inspection, oiling andrepairing of the contained working gears as positioned and mountedwithin these housings, without the complete disassembling of the same aswould be .required in the original structure. The parts of this housingare secured together by means of the bolts lila, ltb and the lower partsof the housing are formed with sockets l4 adapted to set over the upperends of two of the laterally disposed corner posts l. The housingcastings l2a and l12b are formed with the gear recesses or seats it andwith the shaftways l6 longitudinally aligned at one side of theapparatus. A pair of T-joints H are threaded by their medial anddown-turned outlets l8 onto the upper ends of the oppositely disposedposts I, and have their heads is bored and reamed'for freely receivingand journalling at one end the end cross-shafts or rollers 20, theopposite ends of these cross-shafts being extended through andjournalled in the gear housings II at points :above the shaftways !B.are keyed on the ends of the rollers 20 within the housings H, and shortdrive shafts 22 are jour- :nalled through the shaft-ways l6 and areprovided with the worms 23 meshing with the said 'worm gears 25. ikeyedto the outer ends of the drive shafts 22, 'whereby the rollers 20 may berotated by turning ithese hand-wheels.

Hand wheels 24 are rigidly The rollers 26 are of course of such lengthas to allow the sides of the frame to be set apart a :distance somewhatgreater than the width of the :grave A. Four lowering straps 25 of anysuitably strong and flexible material are provided, a pair of thesestraps being secured by one end to each of the end rollers 20 in aspaced relation and anchored thereto in any conventional manner. Thesestraps are rolled or wound upon themselves around the rollers 20, and ofcourse will be payed out or unrolled by rotating the hand wheels 24 inthe proper direction, and will be rewound or drawn upward by the reverserotation of these wheels. Triangular loops or eyes 26 are secured to thefree ends of the straps 25 and S-shaped hooks 21 are hooked throughthese eyes as shown, these hooks being thus disposable for use in amanner later to be pointed .out.

The foregoing elements and structural features constitute the frame-workand working .elements of the said patented invention, the only :novelfeature of the assembly as so far described residing in positioning theposts I laterally of the ends of the grave A for facilitating inter-:ments in limited end-wise space, as heretofore referred to, and in thedescribed three-part structure of the housings I I.

It is obvious that the assembly as described may be readily dismantledfor transportation from place to place, the dismantling resulting in thedividing of the frame and separation of the elements, all of which maybe again speedily reassembled for use on location as desired.

Theapparatus as described is for use in con-v Two worm gears 2| 4nection with a hollow vault B', as usually formed of concrete or othersuitable material, the same being generally of rectangular or oblongformation, with its under side open, and adapted to seat upon the baseor bottom slab C over the coffin D as mounted upon the said base. Thecofiin D is of any conventional form, and in the process of interment ispositioned upon the base slab C which in turn is supported immediatelyover the grave A upon spaced cross strips 30,

immediately under the vault dome B and in vertical operative alignmenttherewith. Thus as the vault dome is lowered it will nicely enclose thecofiin and seat at its lower margins upon the base slab.

In accordance with the invention the vault dome B is provided with metalend hooks or loops 28 anchored in spaced relation in the lower marginsof the ends thereof, and which may be a part of the usual reinforcingframework commonly used in suchconcrete structures. These loops 22 maythus be readily engaged by the hooks 2'! in the operation of theapparatus inmaking an interment. The apparatus also includes loweringcables 3| for positioning under the ends of the base of the vault andenclosed coflln, these cables being of such length as to permit theirbeing pulled upward at their ends alongside and above the vault B whenthesame is resting upon its base, as shown in Figure 4. Loops or eyes 32are secured to the ends of these cables.

In performing an interment with an apparatus of this kind, the vaultdome B is first elevated above the mouth of the grave A by hooking thehooks 21 into the end loops 28 and then winding up the straps 26 ontothe shafts or rollers 20. The base C is then positioned over the graveand supported in place by the cross strips 30, these operations ofcourse being performed prior to the arrival of the coii'in at the grave.The pail-bearers deposit the coffin on the base C, and the vault dome Bis then lowered over the coffin onto its base C, by rotation of the handwheels 24.. The hooks 2'! are then disengaged from the loops 28 at theends of the vault dome, and the ends of the cables 3! after being passedunder the ends of the base slab C are drawn upward alongside the vaultand the hooks 21 are engaged with the loops or eyes 32, after the straps25 have been wound up somewhat tautly. Thus slings are provided at theends of the assembly for lowering the same into the grave, which isreadily done by first raising the assembly, slightly for removal of thecross strips 30 and then operating the hand Wheels 241 for the loweringoperation. When this is done the hooks 21 are disengaged from one end ofeach of the cables 3! and the straps 25 are wound up, thus withdrawingthe cables from the grave and leaving the vault assembly in placetherein, the latter being positioned on bricks 33 in a conventionalmanner and for facilitating the withdrawal of the cables. Ordinarily itshould require a man improvements and novelstructuralfeatures asrecited. An important additional novel feature or features resides inbraking devices forappropriately regulating and slowing the loweringoperation of the heavy vault dome down onto its base over the coflin,and then lowering the entire assembly down into the grave. Owingto theweight of such an assembly, the gravitational pull is so great as tounduly speed the descent of the vault and contents into the grave. It isan important object of, the present invention therefore to providepracticable hand braking -mechanisms or regulators for controlling theworm gears 2 l, and cooperating friction plugs in the ends of the wormshaft-ways [6 for controlling the drive shafts 22 mounted through theshaft-ways. For this purpose the gear housings I l are provided withbushingsl'la ffor receiving the journalled ends of the shafts or rollers28 as passed into these housings, the said bushings being mounted ateach side of the worm gears 2|. jointed ends 20a of the roller shafts 20as passed through the housings II are keyed to the shafts 20' in a'conventional manner, as at 2017, and are reduced and screw threaded asshown at 20c, and axially tapped brake wheels 35 are provided forthreadedly mounting upo-njthese ends, where they may be locked in placeby means of washer-s36 removably mounted upon the ends of the shafts 20by means of set screws 31 passed through the washers and into the tappedends of the'shafts. Heavy friction washers 38 of any suitably fibrous orcomposition material, are mounted over the ends of the roller shafts 20and are pressed up against the sides of the housings H, and outer pressor friction cones 39 are then slidably keyed as at 40 upon the ends ofthese shafts and adapted to press up against the outer sides of thewashers 38,-these cones being normally pressed outward by coil springs4i seated over the shaft ends. The dimensions of the elements are suchthat when the Washers and cones are mounted upon the ends of the rollershafts the outer ends of the cones will extend out somewhat over thethreaded ends of the shafts and so that when the brake wheels 35 areturned up onto these threaded ends of the shafts, they will press upagainst the outer ends of the friction cones and force those cones andthe friction washers up against the housings ll, thus exerting a brakingeffect upon the worm gears 2| commensurate with the pressure of thebrake wheels as turned upon the threaded spindies of the roller shafts.Complementary to the described braking wheels and mechanisms justdescribed, co-operative screw threaded friction plugs or nuts 42 areseated within the tapped inner ends of the shaft-ways I6, as clearlyshown in Figure '7, and it is to be noted that these plugs arereversible for seating within the ends of the shaft-ways, and that theopposite ends of the plugs are formed with circular, fiat-faced heads42a and 42b, either of which is adapted, when turned inwardly, to abutflatly against the inner flat ends of the drive shafts 22, and thus actas a friction brake upon the rotation of said drive shafts, dependingupon the degree of pressure of the plugs and whether the larger orsmaller ends thereof are turned inwardly, the degree of pres sure of theplugs being of course dependent upon the force with which they areturned or screwed into their seats.

Thus it is evident that by the employment of either or both of thedescribed braking mechanisms, singly or in unison, the descent of thevault and contents may be regulated in speed as desired, or may be evenheld stationary when desired. The described apparatus is ordinarilyoperated by placing a man at each of the handwheels 24, however shouldit be found desirable or necessary to operate the apparatus by only oneman, this could be readily accomplished. as

The outer separable and illustrated in Figure 9, by reversingthepositioning of one of the housings Hat one endof the apparatus, so thatthe hand-Wheel end thereof would face toward the housing at the oppositeend, then removing the said reversed hand-wheel 24, then removing thefriction plug or nut 42 at this opposite end, and slip joint in aconventional manner a connecting shaft X between the ends of the twoaligned worms 23, for operatively connecting these worms. Thus operationof the one-hand wheel 24 would co-operatively rotate both of the worms23 for rotating the roller shafts 20 and raising or lowering theconnected vault and contents.

It is thought that the construction, use and operation of the saidimprovements over the original patented invention will be fullyunderstood from'the foregoing descriptions, and while the drawing anddescription shows specific forms of said improvements, these forms andspecific constructions may be changed or modified as may be desired,within the scope of the claims.

Iclaim:

1. In an apparatus of the kind described for mounting over an opengrave, the same including an oblong supporting frame with corner postsand gear housings upon the upper ends of the posts at one side of theframe and roller shafts disposed transversely at the ends of the frameand horizontally journaled at one end through the said gear housings androtatably supported at their opposite ends at the upper ends of theposts at the opposite side of the frame, and there being worm gears uponthe ends of the roller shafts within the gear housings, and includingdrive shafts with worms thereon journaled through the gear housingstransversely below the said worm gears with the worms in mesh with thegears, and there being operating hand wheels upon the outwardly extendedends of the drive shafts, braking mechanisms at the ends of the rollershafts as extended through the gear housings, the same comprising brakewheels threadedly mounted upon the reduced and threaded ends of theroller shafts, and frictional braking elements interposed between thebrake wheels and the adjacent sides of the gear housings,

whereby the turning up of the brake wheels or releasing same will resultin pressing the intermediate brake elements against the sides of thegear housings for slowing the movement of the roller shafts, orreleasing the brake wheels will speed the movement of said shafts.

2. In an apparatus according to claim 1, and additional brakingdevicesmounted upon the inner ends of the said drive shafts for controlling therotation thereof.

CHRISTY L. BERG.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 56,937 Hartill Aug. 7, 1866323,531 Reiche Aug. 4, 1885 851,861 Brown et a1. Apr. 30, 1907 1,855,469Berg Apr. 26, 1932 1,971,515 Transue Aug. 28, 1934 2,117,518 Smola May17, 1938 2,262,937 Holmes Nov. 18, 1941

